(1) Field of the Invention
The invention relates to concealed suspended ceiling construction facilitating accessibility and capable of variable lighting, air distribution, and decorative appearance without panel or runner disassembly.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Accessible suspended ceiling systems are in wide use in the building construction industry. It is necessary in many of these constructions to have direct entry to the ceiling plenum for access to electrical, plumbing, air distribution, and other services without damage to the ceiling panels or components.
Typically, accessibility is attained by the removal of ceiling panels demountably coacting with ceiling runners. Numerous suspended ceiling constructions provide aesthetically pleasing decorative lower faces of the panels. The ability to alter the overall decorative pattern is limited in that the entire panel must be removed and replaced to change the appearance. Also, the location of lighting and air distribution fixtures is restrained to specified locations subject to relocation only upon complete removal of particular panel units.
Some systems attempt to overcome the restriction on changeability by utilizing separately mounted recesses lighting fixtures whereby the ceiling panels have no supportive dependence on the lighting or air distribution fixtures. Such constructions overcome the problems by providing additional complex structural components involving lengthier installation and increased manufacturing costs.
(3) Objects of the Invention
It is a primary object of the invention to provide a concealed suspended ceiling which allows direct entry to the ceiling plenum for access to electrical, plumbing, air distribution, and other utilities and services without damage to the ceiling tile or components.
It is an important object of this invention to provide a suspended ceiling system and ceiling tile usable therein having the capacity to change the ceiling pattern appearance to coordinate room and ceiling decor by modifiable access panel fixtures.
It is accordingly an object of this invention to provide a suspended ceiling system that allows the deletion or relocation of lighting and air distribution units prior to, or following, installation.
It is a concomitant objective of this invention to attain accessibility, relocatability, and variable decorative appearance while permitting ceiling tile to remain engaged to ceiling runners during such transformations.